


Roulette Wheel Kisses

by nam_seonji



Series: Soft Stray Kings [1]
Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Bang Chan-centric, Chan just wants kisses, Hugs, I love Stray Kids okay, I stan soft kings, M/M, Sleepy Kisses, Soft Bang Chan
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-03
Updated: 2018-12-13
Packaged: 2019-08-17 06:26:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 4,855
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16511054
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nam_seonji/pseuds/nam_seonji
Summary: He’s so confused.He wants to ask for kisses, to be as affectionate as Jisung or as Minho. It’s not that he’s not affectionate, at all, it’s just that he hasn’t ever been able to cross that particular invisible boundary.~ alternatively, Chan just wants kisses and his members are very willing to give them to him





	1. Strawberry

He’s tired.

He’s really tired.

They’ve been working for their I Am You comeback and with the recent appearances on ASC and Music Bank and continuing to produce music, Chan doesn’t think he’s had anywhere near enough sleep for him to be able to be a functioning human being right now. Which makes his brain do weird things at 5 in the morning.

Jisung and Minho have always been affectionate towards each other, but recently they seem to have taken it upon them to make it some sort of contest, always sitting on the other members’ laps, or giving an insane amount of back hugs. They’ve also started being more liberal with kisses. It’s stirred something inside of Chan. He wouldn’t call it jealousy, but...

He’s so confused.

He wants to ask for kisses, to be as affectionate as Jisung or as Minho. It’s not that he’s not affectionate _at all_ , it’s just that he hasn’t ever been able to cross that particular invisible boundary. Hugging he can do, squishing the other members is basically his thing now, just kissing…

He sighs, pulling his hoodie on and stepping out of the comfort of his room. He pads into the kitchen, opening the fridge in search of something edible. Just as he reaches for the milk, arms snake around his torso and a head comes to rest on his shoulder.

“Hey, hyung” Felix’s voice is rough from sleep and stirs something protective in Chan, something that he hasn’t been able to shake since Felix’s elimination.

He pats Felix’s arm gently as he places the milk back in the fridge, “You’re up early.”

Felix hums, “Couldn’t sleep anymore.”

Chan frowns, “Couldn’t sleep as in awake, or couldn’t sleep as in _couldn’t sleep_?”

“Just awake,” Felix reassures, moving with Chan as they head over to the table, “Wanted to see if there was any food.”

Chan nods, “I think there’s some leftover kimchi stew from yesterday. Make sure you have something though, I’m going to go and get dressed.”

Felix moves away from him a little, giving Chan the chance to turn. _This is your chance, Channie_ , he thinks. The younger’s cheek is turned towards him as he moves towards the spot that Chan just vacated and Chan moves in, placing a soft kiss to the younger boy’s skin. Heat spreads over his cheeks, painting them red. His hands curl into his sleeves and he moves away, trying to make it as natural as possible. He’s glad that it’s still so dark in the dorm, so that Felix can’t see the impressive blush he’s sporting, meaning he could probably still make it out of the kitchen with his dignity intact.

Before he can move, however, a hand snakes around his wrist and lips press against his cheek. He’s pretty sure Felix can feel the heat radiating from him now, but the younger boy doesn’t say anything. When Chan gains the courage to look up, Felix has moved to the fridge, humming some tune. He wants to say something, but any words die in his throat and his brain is just too tired to do any explaining at the moment. So he doesn’t. He moves out of the kitchen and gets ready for dance practice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is really just me projecting my feelings lol. i love stray kids so much, i shall try to do them justice. i'm a sucker for these soft kings and i think this is probably turning into a multichapter fic (probably my november project lol). i hope you enjoyed it
> 
> ~ seonji


	2. Lemon

Chan didn’t think about the kisses again until later that night. Dance practice was as exhausting as always, but it was a satisfying kind of burn that settled deep into his muscles. It was like Felix had lifted some of the pressure that was on his shoulder and Chan found himself able to relax into the movement, something that had been difficult for him before.

Time passes and Chan is working on some beats in his room late into the night (later than he probably should be, considering he has a meeting early the next day) when a soft knock sounds on his door. “Yeah?” He calls, slipping off his headphones and pausing his music.

Jeongin’s voice sounded from the other side of the door, “Hyung, can I come in?”

“Yeah, sure.” Chan places his computer to the side and slips to the edge of his bed.

Jeongin opens the door gingerly, fingers curled around the doorframe, “Sorry hyung… I know it’s late.”

Chan smiles, “Don’t worry Innie. What’s up?”

Jeongin shuffles in. His eyes are red and the lack of sleep from the last three days had painted itself in dark circles around his eyes. Chan cringes inwardly: he hates seeing the effect that their comeback has on his members, no matter how well they do. It never seems worth it. He sighs sympathetically and opens his arms. Jeongin flings himself into them, curling up against Chan’s chest. The older runs his fingers through Jeongin’s hair soothingly, heart breaking as he feels his youngest dongsaeng heave with sobs.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Chan whispers, sighing when Jeongin shakes his head and running his hands down Jeongin’s back.

Eventually Jeongin’s sobs subside and Chan moves. He slips down beneath the covers, drawing Jeongin with him. The younger boy is tense at first but soon he feels Jeongin press himself against his side, hands curling into the soft material of Chan’s sleepshirt. Chan smiles gently, hand reaching over to rest on Jeongin’s back, but Jeongin shifts and lifts his head, his eyes meeting Chan’s. Something indescribable passes between them. Chan is about to say something, when soft lips press against his nose. Jeongin smiles, resting his head on Chan’s shoulder, “Thanks, hyung.”

“No worries. Want to talk about it tomorrow?”

Jeongin shifts, “I don’t know…”

“That’s okay, don’t worry about it now. Goodnight, Innie.”

“Night, hyung.” Jeongin’s eyes close. The silence lulls him into the space beyond consciousness. He drifts into sleep, but not before he feels Chan press a kiss to his forehead.

(Chan’s computer is still open and he’s pretty sure that he hadn’t save the work that he’d been doing over the last few hours, but Jeongin is snoring gently and Chan smiles: it really doesn’t matter anyway)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay, so I'm not sure how regular updates are gonna be, but I am so thankful for everyone who gave kudos and thank you for the comments aye_its_alaina and toalltheones, they made me really happy (I will make sure I include more chanlix for you in the future). thank you so much for the bookmarks, Yhuria, Bandbracelets, Softkitty_warmkitty_purrpurrpurr, WhimsicalKookie and Smitters. I hope you guys are enjoying this story as much as I am
> 
> ~ seonji


	3. Lime

Chan heaved himself out of bed the next morning, careful not to wake Jeongin in the process. 3RACHA were heading to the studio early, Jisung had some things he wanted Chan to look at before they went to dance practice with the others.

Chan tiptoes around the dorm, waving to Changbin and Jisung who are already at the door.

“Hey.” Chan almost startles, jumping a little. Felix is standing in the doorway to the living room, hands rubbing at his eyes sleepily, “Are you heading out?”

Chan hums, arms circling around Felix’s waist, “Yeah, we’re going to the studio.”

Felix hums too, leaning his forehead against Chan’s, “You’ll meet us at dance practice?”

Chan draws back, smiling, “Yeah.” He picks up his bag with his laptop and notebooks, “See you there?” Felix nods and Chan eases the door closed behind him.

It isn’t rare that they will find themselves in the studio on an early morning like this, Chan working on beats on his computer and writing notes whilst Changbin hums rap lyrics and random scraps of melody under his breath and Jisung scribbles in his notebook furiously, as if he’s trying to set some kind of record. It was a kind of chaotic harmony. They would often look to each other for approval on lyrics, then lapse back into silence. There was nowhere that Chan found more comfortable than here.

Chan bites on the end of his pen, thinking over the words he’d carefully scribbled. He starts when Jisung speaks softly, “Hyung.”

Both Chan and Changbin look up and Jisung grins, “Channie hyung,” Changbin turns back to be absorbed in his work again, “Could you have a look at this?”

Chan smiles, “Sure, Sungie.” Jisung hands over his notebook and Chan scans the lines written out there. He reads them quickly in his head, and then out loud. Jisung is right, something doesn’t seem to quite fit. He reads it through again and again and then it clicks. “I think I’ve worked it out.” Jisung looks up at him expectantly and Chan smiles, pointing to one of the lines, “Think this line is one syllable too long. If you shorten it here, it should work.” He crosses out one part, handing it back to Jisung.

Jisung smiles, running through the newly corrected line in his head. Chan watches as Jisung mouths the lyrics, then his smile turns into a grin and he laughs. Chan grins as Jisung looks at him. He moves back towards his work, sliding his chair over to his computer. He’s about to ask Jisung to come over, turning towards the younger boy, when lips press against his. Jisung’s eyes are as wide as Chan’s, he was obviously aiming for Chan’s cheek, but Jisung’s eyes close after a moment and he leans in. Chan blushes bright red, pulling away in shock. He stutters, “W-We should probably get to dance practice.” Chan gets up, packing his notebook back in his bag as quickly as he can.

“We’ll meet you there, hyung.” Jisung smirks as he hears the door almost slam closed. He turns to Changbin, who is shaking his head fondly. He pulls his phone out of his pocket, opening one of their group chats.

**05:50 | Soft Hyungline Hours (2)**

**squirrel:** I Am: Soft

**baby shark:** Hyung, what did you do?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> omg over 100 kudos, i love you guys. thank you bopsandbeans, qwerty2015, wolfbornstormchild, Vernacious, wolfvonbiele93, Got7lover2018 for the bookmarks and hyunjins_vocal for your comment, i'm so glad you like it. this is probably going to turn into an ot9 fic, because i love them all.
> 
> thank you so much for reading!
> 
> ~ seonji


	4. Blueberry

Cooking normally falls to Minho or to Changbin, or to anyone other than Chan, but the dance line stayed behind to get a headstart on the more challenging choreography and Changbin had insisted Chan had gone home early because the leader has been pulling so many late nighters already, so Chan takes it upon himself to try and cook.

_Try_ being the operative word.

He thought kimchi stew would be easy enough to do, so here he stands, over a pot of boiling kimchi, stirring away. He considers himself pretty successful, even though so far he’s spilt half a pint of broth on the floor, almost cut himself with the kitchen knife and confused sugar for salt, but the stew is now safely bubbling away on the hob. He stirs it gently, taking care not to slosh any more of the broth onto the side. He opens his phone with one sauce covered finger, clicking on his and Woojin’s messages.

**20:04 | bear & kangaroo**

**kangaroo:** are you nearly home?

**bear:** there’s traffic, but we’re on our way

**kangaroo:** okay :((

He sighs at the silence in the dorm kitchen, wishing he hadn’t left the rest of the group at the studio. He’s so used to having people around him, their sounds mixing into the background of his everyday life. The quiet really is unnerving when he’s used to the maknae line’s screaming and shouting and Felix’s constant vine references and somebody always blasting music at insane hours. So, it’s been a while since he’s felt so _alone_.

Chan is lost in thought, hand idly stirring the pot when the door opens suddenly and Chan startles, hand slipping on the handle of the saucepan. His fingertip brushes against the side of the pan and Chan lets out a yelp, clutching his hand to his chest.

“Are you okay?” Woojin pries Chan’s hand from his chest gently and Chan uncurls his fingers. Woojin runs his fingers over Chan’s hand gently, wincing in sympathy as Chan hisses as Woojin’s fingers come in contact with the burnt area. He turns the heat down on the stew, pulling Chan gently to stand in front of the sink. Woojin turns the cold water on, holding Chan’s burnt finger underneath. Chan winces as the cold water runs across the burn, but the pain stops after a minute he sighs softly. Woojin takes his hand out of the water, inspecting it. He then reaches for the first aid kit they keep in the cupboard for just such occasions, opening it and reaching for a plaster.

He blushes, looking at Chan sheepishly, “I know they’re not the… well, they’re the only ones we’ve got left.” He opens the packaging of the plaster, placing it gently against Chan’s finger.

Chan cringes from slight embarrassment on the inside when he sees Tigger smiling up at him from the plaster on his finger. It had definitely been a mistake to let Felix restock the first aid kit. He looks at Woojin, “Thanks, hyung.”

Woojin sighs, smiling, pressing a kiss to the bandaid on Chan’s finger. Chan blushes - he’s pretty sure that at some point soon, the red colour is going to stain his cheeks permanently. Woojin takes the rest of Chan’s hand in his carefully, holding it while he takes hold of the spoon and goes back to stirring the kimchi. Chan just watches him as Woojin prepares dinner, moving with him as Woojin bustles around the kitchen.

The two are so wrapped up in each other that they don’t Hyunjin takes one look at their joined hands and sighs, handing Seungmin a 10,000 won note.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i can't believe how many of you are liking this omg. i'm so glad you guys are enjoying it. thank you bopsandbeans, Bellaships, wolfvonbiele93, stanskz (i totally agree with your user btw) and FrostedSkies for your wonderful comments. you guys make me so happy and you guys always deserve a mention ;). also, thank you to tinkerandie, Mindwaves, kingzhuzhengting, faaculae and Namimed (the comment on your bookmark made me soft inside omg) for your bookmarks
> 
> i hope you keep enjoying reading
> 
> ~ seonji


	5. Watermelon

“Hyuung, can you come here a second?” Hyunjin grins at him, “I just want to take a selca, Channie hyung, please?” He looks up at Chan through his lashes, giving the older puppy dog eyes.

Chan rolls his eyes - he regrets letting the maknae line spend so much time together, that they’re picking up each others’ tricks - but wanders over planting himself on the sofa next to Hyunjin, “What are we doing?”

“Taking a selca, hyung, over here.” Hyunjin directs him to the camera of his phone and they take a few selcas, pulling funny faces and smiling for Stays, but then Hyunjin obviously has an idea, so he gets Chan to stand, moving the older into different positions to take various funny photos.

After sitting through photo after photo of Hyunjin positioning him and smiling at the camera (he was basically sat on Chan’s lap giggling the entire time), Chan decides to get revenge. He stands up and moves in close to the younger, pouting his lips and looking like he’s going to kiss Hyunjin. He gets his reward, as Hyunjin blushes bright red. He slides in closer, closing his eyes and standing on his tiptoes.

It’s a precarious position in the first place, but Chan’s not a quitter, or about to let the younger win, so he tries to stay as still as possible. Hyunjin seems to be taking forever, trying to get the right angle for the selca. Chan tries to keep his balance, but eventually he feels light pressure on his back and his feet tip him forwards. He slips, hands catching themselves on Hyunjin’s thighs (he wonders about how close he’d come to really embarrassing both himself and Hyunjin later), but he can’t quite stop his lips crashing into the younger member’s cheek.

He pulls away quickly, embarrassed, “Sorry, Hyunjinnie.”

But Hyunjin just smiles, eyes turning into adorable crescents, “It’s okay hyung, look the photo’s great.” He shows Chan his phone and even Chan has to admit that it looks kind of adorable. “And,” Hyunjin lowers his voice to a whisper, even though it’s pretty pointless since Jisung and Jeongin’s screaming in the background could probably cover the sound of a bomb going off, “You know you don’t have to ask to be able to kiss any of us, right hyung? You know we don’t mind, right?”

Chan blushes, moving away from Hyunjin, “I-I’m going to go check the others are ready.”

“I think you scared hyung away.” Hyunjin looks up, almost pouting, as Changbin walks over.

Hyunjin whines, “It was an accident, hyung, I swear.”

“Yah, what are you talking about? I watched you nudge Chan-hyung.” Changbin scolds playfully.

“I’m sorry, hyung,” Hyunjin at least has the decency to look a little sheepish as he smiles, “At least the photo came out okay.”

“What photo?” Hyunjin smiles as Seungmin comes over, taking his phone out to show the other 2000 liner. Seungmin smiles at the photo, holding the phone in two hands, “Send it to the group chat?” He hands the phone back to Hyunjin.

**16:03 | Soft Hyungline Hours**

**hyunjean:** [sent a photo]

**hyunjean:** you’re welcome

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> over 200 kudos omg i can't believe how nice you guys are being, it makes me so happy! thank you tinkerandie, badpunning and Bellaships for your comments and leemarkhyuk and ahhhscream for your bookmarks, i am so glad you guys are enjoying this. i hope you continue to enjoy and that you keep stanning stray kids
> 
> ~ seonji
> 
> (also, just a subnote, ya boi has got an interview at oxford university, come and scream with me about this)


	6. Vanilla

Chan doesn’t mean to, but he starts subconsciously avoiding the other members. When they ask him whether he wants to eat with them, Woojin smiling at him, he says he isn’t hungry. When the maknae line invite him into their room to play videogames the one night they make it home at a reasonable time, he says he is tired and spends the night staring at the ceiling, listening to the sounds of Fortnite and Overwatch ringing through the walls.

He starts spending more time in the studio, insisting he needs time to work alone when Jisung offers to keep him company. It isn’t like he doesn’t see Jisung’s upset pout when he declines or the worried looks that the members keep sending his way, he just doesn’t know what to do.

This was what he wanted, wasn’t it?

He wants to be close to the others and he wants to get and give kisses, but he’s scared. Scared of getting too close, of disappointing the members. He’s done it before, with Felix’s and Minho’s eliminations. He should have been there for them, to help them with their performances, and Felix with his english. He so scared of failing them again.

Chan sighs, pulling the sweaty clothes off that he’s been wearing since dance practice and slipping on his pyjamas. There’s a soft knock at his open door and Minho stands in the opening. He smiles and Chan smiles back gently; he’s too tired to get out of this situation and something in his brain doesn’t really want him to.

Minho takes Chan’s hand gently, but his eyes radiate concern. He seems nervous, Chan isn’t quite sure about what, so the older squeezes Minho’s hand, showing the younger a small smile when Minho clears his throat.

“The others are worried, hyung. You’ve been staying out later and later and even though you’ve been avoiding us, we can see it. It’s hurting us, hyung, because you think you can’t come to us. It hurts that we’ve pushed you so far away that you don’t feel like you can talk to us.”

Minho’s voice sounds choked up, and Chan looks up. The younger’s head is bowed, looking at the floor and his breath comes shakily. He tilts Minho’s head up, hand wiping at the tears that had gathered under the younger’s eyes. He smiles and Minho returned it with a watery one of his own.

“I didn’t mean to.” Chan’s voice is barely a whisper, “I-I’m just…”

“You’re scared.” Minho smiles, “It’s okay, Channie-hyung, we’re all scared. Let’s just be scared together, okay?” He wipes away a single tear that has trickled down Chan’s cheek, “I know you’re scared of failing us, or letting us down, or whatever, but you won’t, you never have. It’s going to be okay, okay? Do you trust us?”

Chan nods, wiping away the last of his and Minho’s tears. Minho leans in, tentatively placing his hand on Chan’s cheek. He whispers, “Do you trust me?”

Chan nods again, eyes closing. He feels Minho press his lips against his, moving gently against them. He shapes his lips to fit the younger’s as they move slowly. He feels the love that Minho is trying to show him pour through the kiss. His hands hold the youngers and intertwine their fingers. They pull away after a moment, leaning in to press their foreheads against one another. Minho is smiling when Chan opens his eyes and he presses another kiss to Chan’s nose, “Good night, Channie-hyung.”

“Night, Minnie.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> fyi, i love Chan, he is the best leader, the boys are all amazing, stays and stray kids are blessed. you guys keep making me really happy with your kudos omg and comments, thank you Bellaships, Fi_Fie_Fo_Frick, faaculae, Loasa, NineOrNothing and FrostedSkies and thank you jeongyawn, MxgicSparklez, svftminho, chuchutrain, MythaRose and etheris13 for the bookmarks
> 
> i hope you keep enjoying ~
> 
> ~ seonji
> 
> (p.s. thank you Frosted and Nine for the comments about oxford, i am so hyped, i can’t believe my interview is at the weekend i am so excited ~)


	7. Caramel

Chan wakes up slowly to the feeling of the body pressed against his side shifting. He opens his eyes, cringing at the soft light spilling in through a crack in the door. He looks to Minho pressed against his side and smiles, hand moving to trace patterns on the younger man’s back.

“You look happy.” Changbin smiles teasingly, leant against the door, but his eyes only convey fondness and warmth.

Chan smiles too, eyes still tracing Minho’s features, “I am happy.”

Changbin raises an eyebrow, “Hyung talked to you about it?”

Chan hums, sweeping a stray bit of hair from Minho’s forehead. He misses being able to be close with the others like this, in a time where there weren’t cameras pointed at their faces every second of the day and they didn’t feel like they were always being watched. Sometimes the closeness feels so fake that it suffocates him, but in this moment he feels at peace with himself.

“I heard what you said last night, hyung.” Chan stiffens a little, eyes looking anywhere but Changbin, but Changbin keeps talking, “Minnie-hyung was right, you can come to us, whatever you need. No matter what it is. We are never going to judge you for it, hyung, or hate you for it or whatever it is you think.”

“I don’t think- I don’t even know what I think.” Chan sighs, eyes meeting Changbin’s for the first time. Changbin is frowning and Chan pushes away the urge to walk over to him and smooth out his forehead with kisses: that wouldn’t solve their current situation.

“Then don’t think.” Changbin replies simply, “Just do what feels right.”

Chan makes a noise of frustration in the back of his throat, “I don’t know what feels right.”

“Then what _do_ you know, hyung?”

Chan locks eyes with Changbin. He whispers, “I know that I want to kiss you right now.”

Changbin smiles properly now, all trace of worry gone and it makes something within Chan burn with joy, “Then do it.”

Chan looks down at Minho, who’s still pressed against his side, fast asleep, “Well, I would go over there, but…”

Changbin rolls his eyes fondly, but crosses the room, placing one knee on the bed and leaning down to kiss Chan gently. Chan leans up into the kiss, smiling when Changbin pulls away. He snuggles back down into the blankets, pulling Minho close.

Changbin laughs softly, “You have to get up at some point Channie-hyung.” Chan hums, forehead pressed against Minho’s, who is still fast asleep. Changbin grins, “I remember someone promised the maknaes a picnic on our next day off.”

“What time is it?” Chan’s eyes shoot open.

“It’s half past eight, hyung.” Minho mumbles sleepily, burrowing into Chan’s chest and away from the light.

Chan looks down at Minho again and sighs, “We should probably get up then.”

Minho opens his eyes and smiles, “You did promise a picnic, hyung.”

Chan groans, heaving the blankets off himself and getting out of bed.

**8:33 | Chan(-hyung) Protecction Squad**

**ilikedark:** [sent a photo]

**woobear:** cute

**freckles:** did u talk, hyung?

**minhoe:** yep ;))

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> over 300 kudos, i am so grateful for you guys and i'm glad you're enjoying this. thank you FrostedSkies and Bellaships for your comments again and android_hearts for your comment and audrieelaine for the bookmark, i'm so glad that you guys are still enjoying it, and thanks for the well wishes, interviews were good! i hope i can keep meeting up to your expectations
> 
> thank you so much!
> 
> ~ seonji


	8. Chocolate

Chan follows Changbin out of the room, holding onto Minho’s hand. He’s still kind of glad that Minho hasn’t let go yet. He’s sure that both Minho and Changbin can tell how nervous he still is about this and he’s thankful that they’re being this patient with him.

“Morning hyungs.” Jeongin is munching on a bowl of whatever sugary mess Jisung had picked up last time they went shopping.

“Morning Innie.” Changbin sidles over to the coffee machine. He holds a cup out to Chan teasingly, but the older just shakes his head, reaching past Changbin to the fridge and grabbing a bottle of strawberry milk and passing it to Minho. The younger smiles in thanks and sits down at the table.

Chan turns to Jeongin, “Where are the others?”

Jeongin swallows, “Seungmin and Hyunjin-hyungs went out with Woojin-hyung to get food for the picnic later. I think Lix and Jisung-hyungs were talking about getting blankets and stuff together.”

“Morning hyungs.” Jisung speeds through the kitchen, latching onto Minho in a back hug.

Minho reaches behind him, ruffling Jisung’s hair, “Hey Sungie, did you and Felix get the other stuff together?”

“Woojinnie-hyung said they’re on their way back now.” Felix smiles as he enters the kitchen, “We’ve put all the stuff in bags, hyung, so we can carry a bag each when we got out.”

Chan pulls him into a hug, but a voice sounds from the hall, “Yeah, we’re not going outside.”

Chan moves into the living area, Felix holding onto his hand. They turn the corner to look into the hall and Chan almost - _almost_ \- laughs at the sight that greets them. Woojin, Hyunjin and Seungmin are stood in the doorway. Their hair is plastered to their foreheads, hoodies soaking wet and dripping onto the floor. They look like wet poodles. Chan hurries over, taking the shopping bags out of their hands so they can take their shoes off.

Changbin rounds the corner, “Bit wet outside then, hyung?”

Felix appears by Chan’s side again. Chan was so preoccupied making sure that everyone was peeling off their wet clothes that he hadn’t even realised that Felix had left, but the younger just smiles and hands him a towel from the pile in his hands. Chan wraps it around Seungmin, who mutters his thanks, shuffling past Hyunjin and taking the elder's hand. Felix shepherds the two soaking boys into the bathroom, shooing them like a concerned mother hen.

Chan smiles and hands the last towel to Woojin, “Bit wet?”

Woojin sighs, “Yeah, you could say that. We managed to get all of the things the maknaes wanted, but I really don’t see it getting any less rainy today.”

Chan frowns, “I know, I’d just feel bad if we didn’t have the picnic today.”

Suddenly, Woojin’s face lights up, “Ask Lix and Jisungie to spread the blankets out on the floor, we can put the food on them and then get the plastic cups out of the cupboard. We’ll still be having a picnic, just not outside.”

“Oh, and by the way, there’s some cocoa powder in the blue bag.” Woojin winks at Chan disappearing into the vacated bathroom.

Chan grins, dragging the bags into the kitchen. Minho helps him get things sorted, cooking the elements that need cooking and making sandwiches. Jeongin is separating the snacks into bowls as Minho hands them to him, stealing pieces of food here and there. Felix and Jisung spread the throws on the floor, scattering pillows around. Changbin moves the snacks onto the blanket and plants himself down beside Felix, Jisung lying with his head on Minho’s thigh. Seungmin and Hyunjin appear in the kitchen eventually and Chan presses mugs of steaming cocoa into their hands, topping them with cream and marshmallows that were left over in the cupboard from one of Felix’s baking adventures. They hand the cups around and Chan passes the last one to Woojin, sitting down on his throw.

Chan takes a large gulp of his hot chocolate, the cream tickling his nose. He hears laughter from his right and a soft, “Channie-hyung.”

Chan turns to look at Seungmin. The younger is giggling a little and Chan smiles, “What’s up Minnie?”

The younger boy smiles, still looking at Chan, “Nothing, you’ve just got cream on your face, hyung.”

“Really?” Chan rubs his sleeve across his mouth, “Did I get it off?”

“No, not quite, just-let me hyung?” Seungmin leans in. He cups Chan’s cheek in his hand, swiping across it with his thumb. Chan is about to thank him, when Seungmin’s lips press against his cheek. He goes quiet, smiling as Seungmin pulls away.

The younger boy leans back, inspecting Chan’s cheek and smiles, “There we go, all gone.”

Chan grins and pulls Seungmin in for a hug, “Thanks Seungminnie.”

The pair look up and the others are smiling at them. Jisung is laying on Minho’s lap, Changbin is curled around Felix, the younger leaning on the elder’s collarbone. Woojin is cuddling Hyunjin, who is running his hand through Jeongin’s hair. Chan’s eyes meet Hyunjin’s and Chan swallows, clearing his throat, “I wanted to say thank you.”

Some of the others open their mouths to speak, but Chan continues talking, “I know that it must have been really confusing for all of you, I’m sorry and I’m really sorry for scaring you, or for pushing you away. I had convinced myself that I was being stupid and that I shouldn’t have to bother you with these kinds of thing because they didn’t matter and they wouldn’t be allowed anyway. I didn’t know how to ask to be close to you guys or how to open up to you, instead I pushed you away and I don’t have a good excuse for it. Hyung is sorry and hyung will try to do better.”

Hyunjin is the first to break the silence. He takes Chan’s hand and looks into his eyes, “Hyung, you have nothing to be sorry for. All that happened was a mistake, a big misunderstanding. We’re sorry for not being there for you when you were struggling.”

Woojin smiles, “It’s in the past, Channie. All that matters now is that you come to us in the future, okay?” Murmurs of agreement ring out around the room.

Chan smiles, carding his hand through Seungmin’s hair, “Okay, hyung.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay, so this is the last chapter for this fic, but don't worry, this is not the end because i have a little series lined up for this, the first chapter of the next story will be posted on Monday. 
> 
> thank you to everyone for sticking with me through this and thank you to Bellaships, wolfvonbiele93, Baby_Alien and joy_infires for your comments and Starlight1395, SoftForMyBabies, BlueButtons, meaniebeanie and laurenrose093 for the bookmarks. i hope you guys enjoyed this twice as long chapter and i hope to see you in the next fic
> 
> till then, much love and keep stanning skz
> 
> ~ seonji


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